Taxman to receive Joseph B. Kirsner Award from the GI Research Foundation
Leader in Chicago real estate to be honored for his efforts as a ‘good friend, a powerful advocate, and a keen professional.’
CHICAGO, November 20, 2023 (giresearchfundation.com) – Seymour “Sy” Taxman knew “Dr. Joe” very well. Dr. Joseph B. Kirsner treated Taxman for years, and the pair grew close.
“Never a week passed without a call from Dr. Joe, always with the same cheerful question ‘How did it go this week?’” Taxman said in a eulogy for Kirsner. “He was truly a humble hero who refused to recognize the value and breadth of the contributions he made not only in medicine, but in establishing the level of care for patients that became a standard.”
Now, Taxman will receive the GI Research Foundation’s award named after Kirsner, honoring Taxman’s decades of support for and collaboration with the foundation. The award will be presented at the 63rd GI Research Foundation Annual Ball on June 1, 2024.
Taxman is founder and former CEO of the Chicago real estate development company Taxman Corp. The firm has developed scores of shopping centers, drugstores, supermarkets, and properties throughout the city and in the suburbs.
Getting to know Kirsner was “a major turning point” in Taxman’s life, he said. “I like to think I was charitable, but I wasn’t going out of my way. Joe was instrumental in redirecting my priorities toward helping others. Talking to him over the years, my thoughts about everything changed.”
Taxman was born and raised on Chicago’s west side, his father owning a clothing store on Maxwell Street. After beginning his career as a Northwestern-trained lawyer, Taxman launched Taxman Corp. from his home’s family room in 1975.
“Sy’s long tenure on our board, his passion for our mission of supporting digestive diseases research at the University of Chicago, and his recognition that patients should be at the center of our work in the clinic and in the lab – these all bring him close to our heart and make him a wonderful reflection of the GI Research Foundation. Like Dr. Joe, he’s a good friend, a powerful advocate, and a keen professional,” said Jackie Casey, executive director of the GI Research Foundation.
In addition to his advocacy for the foundation and digestive diseases research, Taxman and his family have also celebrated Dr. Joe through their philanthropy. They have provided millions of dollars in research and medical training support at the University of Chicago through the GI Research Foundation.
Most notably, the Taxman Family Foundation gave $2.5 million to establish, among other projects, the Joseph B. Kirsner Endowed Fellowship and the Joseph B. Kirsner Endowment for Excellence. Launched in 2012, the fellowship continues to enable young physicians from around the world to train with the University of Chicago’s top gastroenterologists and other specialists. The excellence fund, meanwhile, helps ensure that the University of Chicago Medicine remains at the forefront of GI patient care, research, and education. It is also used for the alumni reception at the annual professional scientific meeting and at which distinguished junior and senior alumni are recognized.
The GI Research Foundation was founded in 1961 by grateful patients and friends of the late Dr. Joseph B. Kirsner, a pioneer in gastroenterology who devoted his life to medicine, teaching, and patient care. Today, the University of Chicago Medicine’s Digestive Diseases Center, which is supported by the foundation, is internationally recognized for research-driven medicine and its team of highly specialized physicians. More than 300 doctors, scientists, trainees, nurses, and staff are part of the center.
“The Digestive Diseases Center and the University of Chicago Medicine’s Section of Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition simply wouldn’t be what they are today without the support of Sy Taxman and like-minded generous individuals who support us and the GI Research Foundation,” said Dr. David Rubin. Rubin is the Joseph B. Kirsner Professor of Medicine and Chief of the Section. He is also Director of the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Center and the GI Research Foundation’s Lead Scientific Advisor.
“We are dedicated to a team approach, to leading-edge research, and to preserving and expanding Dr. Kirsner’s legacy and steadfast dedication to people and their needs. Sy has been an important part of our team for years, and his devotion and insights are invaluable,” said Dr. Rubin, who received the GI Research Foundation’s Joseph B. Kirsner Award in 2022.
About the GI Research Foundation
The GI Research Foundation was founded in 1961 by grateful patients and friends of the late Dr. Joseph B. Kirsner, a pioneer in gastroenterology who devoted his life to medicine, teaching, and patient care. Today, the University of Chicago Medicine’s Digestive Diseases Center, which is supported by the foundation, is internationally recognized for research-driven medicine and its team of highly specialized physicians. For more information, see: https://giresearchfoundation.org/
About the University of Chicago Digestive Diseases Center
The Digestive Diseases Center at the University of Chicago Medicine is a collaborative, multidisciplinary network of physicians, researchers and affiliated health professionals who share a legacy of innovation and a common purpose: to improve the lives of patients who suffer from digestive diseases. For more information, see: https://www.uchicagomedicine.org/conditions-services/digestive-diseases